Windows Version 1.11 Mac Version 1 - The Plugin Site · 2018-04-17 · NoiseControl allows you to...

Windows Version 1.11Mac Version 1.09

Copyright © 2011-2018 by Harald Heim & The Plugin Site

Support

Web site: http://thepluginsite.com

E-mail: http://www.thepluginsite.com/about/contact.htm

User Forum:http://www.thepluginsite.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=38

Credits

Idea and Concept: Harald Heim

Framework Code: Alex Hunter, Harald Heim, Martijn VanDer Lee

Windows Development: Harald Heim

Mac Development: Nik Utenkov

Logo and Artwork: Steve Upham, Roberto Muscia, HaraldHeim

Beta Testers: Roberto Muscia, Stan Robins, Eric Helgeson,Robin Rowlands, Nelia, Robert Terrell, Gerd Dollhopf, MikeMacDonald

http://thepluginsite.com

http://www.thepluginsite.com/about/contact.htm

http://www.thepluginsite.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=38

Contents1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................1

1.1 Description............................................................................................................................11.2 Compatibility.........................................................................................................................31.3 Installation............................................................................................................................6

1.3.1 Installing the Plugin Version under Windows...............................................................61.3.2 Installing the Plugin Version under MacOS X..............................................................7

1.4 Workflow...............................................................................................................................81.5 General Usage.....................................................................................................................9

1.5.1 Running the Plugin......................................................................................................91.5.2 The Main Dialog...........................................................................................................9

1.6 Step By Step Guide............................................................................................................121.6.1 Denoising An Image..................................................................................................121.6.2 Manual Denoising......................................................................................................141.6.3 Creating Presets For Your Camera...........................................................................161.6.4 Creating a Softening Effect........................................................................................16

1.7 Frequently Asked Questions..............................................................................................18

2 General Features.............................................................................................................................202.1 Tools & Reset.....................................................................................................................202.2 Split Views..........................................................................................................................232.3 The Bottom Tab Sheets......................................................................................................25

2.3.1 Help...........................................................................................................................252.3.2 Navigator...................................................................................................................252.3.3 Info.............................................................................................................................252.3.4 Prefs..........................................................................................................................26

2.4 Smart Filtering....................................................................................................................282.5 Batch Processing................................................................................................................29

2.5.1 Batch Processing in Photoshop.................................................................................292.5.2 Batch Processing in Paint Shop Pro..........................................................................302.5.3 Batch Processing in Other Applications.....................................................................32

2.6 Key Shortcuts.....................................................................................................................33

3 Special Controls ..............................................................................................................................343.1 Modes.................................................................................................................................34

3.1.1 Easy Mode.................................................................................................................343.1.2 Advanced Mode.........................................................................................................35

3.2 Auto Tab Sheet...................................................................................................................363.2.1 Auto Sample..............................................................................................................363.2.2 Auto Preset................................................................................................................363.2.3 Preset Options...........................................................................................................37

3.3 Manual Tab Sheet..............................................................................................................383.3.1 Easy Mode.................................................................................................................383.3.2 Advanced Mode.........................................................................................................383.3.3 Luminance Denoise...................................................................................................393.3.4 Color Denoise............................................................................................................40

3.4 Tone Tab Sheet..................................................................................................................413.5 Color Tab Sheet.................................................................................................................433.6 Enhance Tab Sheet............................................................................................................45

3.6.1 Sharpness..................................................................................................................453.6.2 Saturation..................................................................................................................463.6.3 Grain..........................................................................................................................46

NoiseControl Manual

i

1 Introduction

1.1 Description

NoiseControl effectively removes image noise while preserving essential details. It offers sharpening, saturation and grainfeatures for enhancing the image after denoising. You can also apply denoising with extreme settings to createpainting-like effects.

NoiseControl is available as a Photoshop-compatible plugin for Windows and MacOS X. The NoiseControl plugin works indozens of graphics applications, including Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, Paint Shop Pro, Photo-Paint, PhotoImpactand IrfanView. It supports batch processing, smart filtering and processes grayscale and RGB images with 8-bit and16-bit/channel.

Effective Noise Processing

Most people want to for remove image noise, because of its ugly or obtrusive appearance. Another problem arises whenyou try to sharpen a noisy image, which yields amplified noise rather than increased sharpness. NoiseControl effectivelydeals with both problems: It removes image noise and other artifacts while keeping image edges and details intact and atthe same time applies sophisticated sharpening without amplifying noise.

NoiseControl distinguishes details from noise by performing thousands of clever calculations per pixel. Thus it is able toachieve a superior detail/noise ratio by keeping essential details while filtering noise. For the best results it internallyoperates with 16-bit and 32-bit precision, even when processing 8-bit images.

Sophisticated Features

NoiseControl offers two methods for automatically choosing effective denoising parameters: The Auto Sample featurefinds and evaluates a noise sample, an uniform image area without any details, whereas the Auto Preset feature choosesan existing preset according to the embedded EXIF data, mainly the camera model and ISO value, of the photo.

There are also various possibilities to manually fine-tune the denoising settings. You can manually select a noise samplein the preview by drawing a sample area, visually compare split views with different settings and select one of them or youcan manually adjust the denoising controls. The ability to view luminance and color channels separately is an additionalaid for manual fine-tuning.

The best results are usually achieved if you selectively adjust the denoising for various image areas. For that purposeNoiseControl allows you to alter the denoising parameters in shadows, midtones, highlights and nine color areas of theimage. These selective adjustment can be performed with the help of sliders or by clicking on the appropriate image areawith the eyedropper tool and dragging left or right.

Further Functionality

NoiseControl also offer various features know from our other PhotoWiz plugins. It features a simple modes for novices aswell as an advanced mode for pro users. There are three preview tab sheet for quickly comparing and adjusting threeversions of the image at the same time. A Navigator tab sheet lets you quickly scroll the preview image and the previewzoom can be set between 6% and 3200%.

On the other hand NoiseControl contains several innovative features. It does not only support multi-core CPUs, but alsodetects your CPU's L2/L3 cache and adjusts its memory usage accordingly, which results in faster rendering. For fasterpreview updates you can use the preview limit tool to restrict the effect to a smaller preview region.

Why NoiseControl is Different

Many other noise reduction tools mainly rely on automatic calibration, which does not produce the best results for allimages, and offer only limited manual adjustments. NoiseControl features several fine-tuning methods includingautomatic, semiautomatic, manual and visual options. Thus it achieves superior denoising results, especially whenfighting very strong noise. Most denoising tools add artifacts along with sharpening whereas NoiseControl's sharpening

feature makes details crisp again without side-effects.

Some tools need several seconds to update the preview, because they need to render the whole image, or only update asmall part of the preview. NoiseControl updates the preview very quickly and still displays the effect fairly accurately atzoom levels other than 100%. NoiseControl offers an easy to use UI and does not confuse the user with cryptic options. Itdoes not require a complex sequence of denoising steps but displays the result instantly.

Some denoising software manufacturers advocate a plastic look and falsely encourage users to shoot with higher ISOvalues. We do not want people to exchange one evil with another. We believe that it is better to turn obtrusive noise intovery fine grain, thus preserving a higher photographic quality. This philosophy is reflected by the moderate default valuesand the "Control" part of the NoiseControl name. Nevertheless NoiseControl also allows you to produce a soft look if thatis what you want.

NoiseControl Manual 2

1.2 Compatibility

NoiseControl works under Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, XP (32-bit & 64-bit) and MacOS X (10.6 and higher). It supports theRGB and Grayscale image modes with 8-bit and 16-bit per channel.

The Plugin Version requires one of the following applications to be installed:

MacOS X:64-bit:

Adobe Photoshop (Version CS5 or higher)◊ Adobe Photoshop Elements (Version 12 or higher)◊ Adobe Illustrator (Version CS6 or higher)◊ AlphaPlugins Launchbox◊ Computerinsel Photoline (Version 16.50 or higher)◊ LemkeSoft GraphicConverter (Version 8.2 or higher)◊ Serif Affinity Photo◊

32-bit:

Adobe Photoshop (Version CS3, CS4, CS5, CS5.5)◊ Adobe Photoshop Elements (Version 6 or higher)◊ Adobe Illustrator (Version CS2 to CS5)◊ Adobe Fireworks (Version CS3 or higher)◊ Computerinsel Photoline (Version 16.50 or higher)◊ LemkeSoft GraphicConverter (Version 8.2 or higher)

Other applications that support Photoshop plugins may also work.

◊

Windows:64-bit:

Adobe Photoshop (Version CS4 or higher)◊ Adobe Photoshop Elements (Version 13 or higher)◊ Adobe Illustrator (Version CS6 or higher)◊ AlphaPlugins Launchbox◊ Computerinsel Photoline 64 (Version 16 or higher)◊ CorelDRAW (Version X6 or higher)◊ Corel Painter (Version 12.1 or higher)◊ Corel Paint Shop Pro (Version X6 or higher)◊ Corel Photo-Paint (Version X6 or higher)◊ Paint.NET (with the PSFilterPdn plugin) (Freeware: www.getpaint.net)◊ Serif Affinity Photo◊ Serif PhotoPlus (Version X6 or higher)◊

32-bit:

Adobe Photoshop (Version 3 or higher, Version CS1 or higher)◊ Adobe Photoshop Elements◊ Adobe PhotoDeluxe◊ Adobe After Effects (Version 4.1, 5.0 and 5.5, but not animatable)◊ Adobe Illustrator (Version 7 or higher)◊ Adobe ImageReady (Version 2 or higher)◊ Adobe PageMaker (Version 6.5 or higher)◊ ACDSystems Photo Canvas (Version 2 or higher)◊ ACDSystems Photo Editor (Version 3 or higher)◊ ACDSystems Canvas (Version X or higher)◊ albelli photo book creator (Freeware: www.albelli.co.uk)◊


http://forums.getpaint.net/index.php?/topic/20622-psfilterpdn-2011-07-14/

http://www.getpaint.net/

http://www.albelli.co.uk/

Ambient Design ArtRage Studio Pro (Version 3 and higher)◊ Arcadia PhotoPerfect (Version 2.9 or higher)◊ ArcSoft PhotoStudio (Version 5.5 or higher)◊ Artweaver Plus (Version 3 or higher)◊ Aurora Borealis Mandala Painter (Version 3 or higher)◊ CADlink SignLab (Version 5 or higher)◊ CDH Image Explorer Pro (Version 4 or higher)◊ Computerinsel Photoline 32 (Version 5 or higher)◊ CorelDRAW (Version 9 or higher)◊ Corel Paint Shop Pro (Version 10 or higher)◊ Corel Photo-Paint (Version 9 or higher)◊ Corel Bryce (Version 4 or higher)◊ Corel Painter (Version 6 and higher, except Version 10 and 11)◊ Deneba Canvas (Version 6 or higher)◊ DigiFoto (Version 3.5 or higher) (Freeware: www.klausdoege.de)◊ DigiSoft ProMedia (Version 2 or higher)◊ DigiSoft ImagePro 2K1◊ Discreet Combustion (Version 2 or higher, but not animatable and preview isbluish)

◊

Equilibrium DeBabelizer Pro (Version 4.5 or higher)◊ GIMP (Version 1.2.4 or higher with the PSPI plugin) (Preview doesn't workcorrectly and may crash if you scroll it too often)

◊

Helicon Filter (Version 4.2 or higher)◊ Image Analyzer (with the 8bf Interface plugin) (Freeware:meesoft.logicnet.dk)

◊

imageN (Freeware: www.pixoid.com)◊ IrfanView (Version 3.85 or higher, Freeware: www.irfanview.com)◊ Jasc Paint Shop Pro (Version 4.12 or higher)◊ KnowledgeAdventure HyperStudio (Version 4.2 or higher)◊ Logipole Konverter (Version 4 or higher)◊ Macromedia Freehand (Version 7 or higher)◊ Macromedia Fireworks (Version 2 or higher, but transparency isn't correctlydisplayed in the preview)

◊

Magix Xtreme Photo Designer (Version 6 or higher, but applying the plugin toa selection or object causes problems and sometimes random crashes occur,Freeware: www.magix.com)

◊

Mediachance PhotoBrush◊ Megalux Ultimate Paint (Version 2 or higher)◊ Megalux Ultimate FX (Freeware)◊ Metacreations Painter (Version 6 or higher)◊ Microfrontier Digital Darkroom (Version 1.2 or higher)◊ Micrografx Picture Publisher (Version 8 or higher, but the preview zoom won'twork)

◊

Microsoft Image Composer (Version 1.5 or higher, but dragging the previewisn't possible)

◊

Microsoft PhotoDraw 2000◊ Microsoft Picture It! Digital Image Pro (Version 7 or higher, but a 100% zoommay not work correctly and Cancel sometimes produces a crash)

◊

Newave Chaos Fx: Twilight'76 (Version 1.2 or higher)◊ New World Focus PhotoEditor (Version 4 or higher)◊ Paint.NET (with the PSFilterPdn plugin) (Freeware: www.getpaint.net)◊ 19th Parallel Sagelight (Version 3 or higher)◊ Photobie Design Studio (Version 1.8 or higher) (Freeware:www.photobie.com)

◊

Photo Filter Factory (Version 9 and higher)◊ Picmaster (Version 1.25 or higher)◊ Plugin Commander Pro (Version 1.5 or higher)◊ PluginMaster◊ PhotoFiltre Studio (Version 7 or higher)◊ PhotoFiltre (Version 6.5 or higher) (with the 8bf Filters plugin) (Freeware:photofiltre.free.fr)

◊

RealWorld Paint.com (Version 2008.1 or higher) (Freeware:www.rw-designer.com)

◊

QFX / QFX LE (Version 7 or higher)◊ Right Hemisphere Deep Paint◊ Satori PhotoXL (Version 2.29 or higher)◊ Serif PhotoPlus (Version 6 or higher)◊ Serif PhotoPlus Starter Edition (Version 2 or higher) (Freeware:www.serif.com)

◊

SigmaPi Pixopedia 24 (Version 1.0.5 or higher)◊


http://www.klausdoege.de/DigiFoto/

http://tml.pp.fi/gimp/pspi.html

http://meesoft.logicnet.dk/

http://www.irfanview.com

http://www.magix.com

http://forums.getpaint.net/index.php?/topic/20622-psfilterpdn-2011-07-14/

http://www.getpaint.net/

http://www.photofiltre-studio.com/plugins/plugins-en.htm

http://photofiltre.free.fr/frames_en.htm

http://www.rw-designer.com/image-editor

http://www.serif.com/free-photo-editing-software/

SigmaPi NiGulp (Version 1.5 or higher) (Freeware: www.sigmapi-design.com)◊ Stoik PictureMan Pro (Version 5 or higher)◊ ThinkTank Ameri-Imager (Version 2 or higher)◊ Ulead Gif Animator (Version 4 or higher)◊ Ulead PhotoImpact (Version 4 or higher)◊ Ulead PhotoExpress (Version 6 or higher)◊ VCW Vicman's Photo Editor (Version 6.9 or higher, but preview draggingcauses crash) (Freeware: www.photo-editor.net)

◊

WebSuperGoo Achroma◊ Xara X◊ XnView (Version 1.70 or higher) (Freeware: www.xnview.com)◊ Zoner Photo Studio (Version 9 or higher)◊


http://www.sigmapi-design.com/freeware.htm

http://www.photo-editor.net

http://www.xnview.com/

1.3 Installation

1.3.1 Installing the Plugin Version under Windows

Method 1: Using Plugin Installer

After running the installer and choosing your installation language keep clicking the Next button. At some point during theinstallation process you will arrive at the "Choose Destination Location" dialog. On it you may enter the installationlocation for the NoiseControl plugin. But we recommend that you keep the suggested installation path as you can lateruse the Plugin Installer tool to conveniently install the plugin.


At the end of the installation process the Plugin Installer dialog will be shown with a list of compatible applications, whichare installed on your computer. The application at the top of the list is always activated by default. If you want to installNoiseControl into other applications, you should activate them, too. Then press the Install button to copy the NoiseControlplugin into the plugin folder of the selected application(s). Finally leave Plugin Installer with the Exit button.

You can run Plugin Installer again at any time from Start > All Programs > The Plugin Site to add NoiseControl to a new orpreviously installed compatible application.

Note: If your application is not listed in Plugin Installer or if Plugin Installer terminates telling you that it didn't manage tofind an application, we suggest to try Method 2 below.

Method 2: Choosing a different installation folder and ignoring Plugin Installer

Method 1 is usually the most convenient way of installing NoiseControl. If you keep your plugins in a folder outside yourapplication's plugin folder, prefer to enter the installation folder in your application's preferences dialog or use anapplication that is not recognized by Plugin Installer, please do the following: On the "Choose Destination Location" dialogduring installation select your preferred plugin folder. When Plugin Installer opens next, ignore it by closing it with the Exitbutton.

1.3.2 Installing the Plugin Version under MacOS X

After double clicking the downloaded .dmg file, click the Agree button to confirm the license agreement. To install theplugin(s) to all supported applications on your computer double click the Install icon. This will install the plugin(s) to AffinityPhoto, GraphicConverter and PhotoLine as well as all available versions of Photoshop and Photoshop Elements. If youwant to install to a certain Photoshop or Photoshop Elements version only, drag and drop the PhotoWiz folder icon ontothe appropriate icon on the right inside the .dmg window.


1.4 Workflow

It is important to carefully consider at which point of the image optimization process to run NoiseControl. Applying it morethan once to the same image is usually not recommended, because noise reduction does not only remove noise but alsoimage details, even when using settings with care.

Increasing the image brightness or changing the white balance can make noise more visible. So it is odten better to applyNoiseControl after these steps to better see the noise that needs to be removed. Thus NoiseControl should be appliedafter our ColorWasher and LightMachine products.

It is usually a good idea to use NoiseControl after converting an image to black and white, e.g. with B/W Styler. The b&wconversion removed the color noise, so you only need to target luminance noise in NoiseControl. In extreme cases theb&w conversion transforms color noise into luminance noise. Then better apply NoiseControl before the conversion.

Downsizing an image reduces noise, so applying NoiseControl to a downsized image has the advantage that you do notneed to apply such a strong noise reduction and the processing is faster. But NoiseControl should be used before animage is upsized. Upsizing increases the size of the noise particles, which makes them more difficult to remove, and italso increases the processing time of NoiseControl.

When using our ContrastMaster product on noisy images or with extreme settings image noise may also become visible.NoiseControl can help in such cases. You may even consider applying NoiseControl before and after usingContrastMaster, but preferably with less intensity.

Sharpening amplifies noise, so removing the noise before an image is sharpened avoids that noise is emphasized.Sharpening the image after removing noise may still make noise more visible. You can avoid that if you use thesharpening feature of NoiseControl, which does not amplify noise, to presharpen the image. Then you either do not needto apply any additional sharpening or you can reduce the intensity of a second sharpening step.

So essentially please apply NoiseControl after white balancing, tonal adjustments, downsizing and black & whiteconversion, but before local contrast adjustments, sharpening and upsizing. That is after ColorWasher, LightMachine andB/W Styler, but before ContrastMaster and FocalBlade. If that sequence disturbs your workflow, at least remember toapply NoiseControl before sharpening with FocalBlade, which is the most important rule.


1.5 General Usage

1.5.1 Running the Plugin

Run your image processing application of choice, e.g. Photoshop, and open an image file. To launch NoiseControl pleaseopen the menu that leads to the plugin filters (e.g. the Filter menu in Photoshop and Elements, the Image -> Plug-ins inPaint Shop Pro or the Effects menu in Photo-Paint) and choose "NoiseControl" from the PhotoWiz sub menu.

If NoiseControl appears grayed out on the menu, then the mode of the opened image is not supported by it. That is thecase if your image has e.g. only 256 colors, 32-bit per channel or is a CMYK image. Then you have to convert it in yourimage application to RGB before you can start working on it with NoiseControl. In Photoshop that is done on the Image >Image Mode menu.

1.5.2 The Main Dialog

Resizing the Dialog

Under Windows you can move the mouse cursor to the borders of the NoiseControl window or to the grip in the bottomright corner to turn it into a sizing arrow. On a Mac you can only use the sizing grip. Then hold down the left mouse buttonand drag to change the size of the window. The preview and all controls will be repositioned according to the new size ofthe window. A smaller preview will speed up the preview rendering. You can also enlarge it to cover the whole screen. Tomake the NoiseControl window as large as the screen, please click on the maximize icon in the title bar. To minimize thewindow to its previous size, please click the icon again. The second icon cancels NoiseControl.


Preview Tab Control

Above the preview you see three tab buttons called Preview 1, Preview 2 and Preview 3. They let you quickly switchbetween three different effect settings and compare them. Only the effect of the selected Preview tab is rendered whenyou press OK. Right clicking on the tab buttons displays a context menu for copying the settings of the currently selectedtab to one of the other tabs.

Preview and Tools

On the left hand side of the dialog box there is a preview box that shows you how the final effect will look like. If the imageisn't fully displayed in the preview and you want to display another part of the image, you can move the image byactivating the hand tool and dragging the image with it. If one of the other tools is activated, you can also scroll the imageby holding down the right mouse button and dragging. The same also works with the left mouse button together with theAlt key. While being moved, the original image is shown and after you release the mouse button the preview isrecalculated. See the Tools & Reset page for more details about the available tools.

Mode & Reset

NoiseControl offers two different modes. Easy Mode is meant for first time users or for people who are satisfied with a fewsimple options. In Advanced Mode, on the other hand, you can achieve all effects of the other modes. For moreinformation, please read the Modes page.

Clicking the Reset button sets all controls to their default values. This is useful if you want to start over with adjusting theeffect. Clicking on the small arrow button at the right hand side of the Reset button displays a menu with various resetoptions. See the Tools & Reset page for more information.

The Main Tab Control

The large tab control with tab sheets like Auto, Manual, Fix, Mask and Effect contains the controls for adjusting the effectof NoiseControl. See the following pages for more explanations: Auto Tab, Manual Tab , Tone Tab, Color Tab andEnhance Tab.

One of the most important type of controls are sliders. They can be used to select a certain value within a specific valuerange. You can drag the slider button with the mouse (or arrow keys or mouse wheel), enter a numerical value in the textbox at the right hand side of the slider bar, click somewhere on the slider bar for large value steps or use the two arrowbuttons for small value steps.

The Bottom Tab Control

The Help tab sheet displays useful information about a control if you move the cursor over it. The Navigator tab sheet letsyou quickly display an image area in the preview. The Info tab sheet shows the currently used sharpening settings andcolor values of the image pixels. Finally, the Prefs tab sheet contains options for changing the general behavior ofNoiseControl. Please read further on the following pages: The Bottom Tab Sheets.


Preview Check Box and Progress Bar

A deactivated Preview check box does not render the effect and therefore does not display any effect in the preview. Thisway you can see before/after versions of the image and adjust a number of controls without provoking a repeatedrendering of the effect. When the effect is rendered, you will see a bar running from left to right in the progress bar control.After the rendering is completed and the preview updated, you will see the time that was needed for rendering as well asan approximation of the time that is needed to render the full image.

Split View

NoiseControl offers some split views for comparing the original with the processed image. If one of the Split Views isactivated, you can select one of the split areas by holding down the Shift key and clicking on it. For more information,please read the Split View page.

Zoom

Below the preview there are + and - buttons with a percentage label in between. These zoombuttons let you adjust the size of the image in the preview box. 100% means that the original sizeof the image is displayed. There is also a button at the left (100%) for quickly switching to 100%zoom.

When starting NoiseControl the zoom rate is automatically set to 100%, because with this settingyou can best examine the noise reduction effect. The Fit zoom option fits the image completelyinto the preview.

If you hold down the Shift key when pressing the + zoom button, the zoom factor will be set to100%. Doing it again will select 3200%. Shift clicking on the - button, will switch to 100% and thento "Fit". The same is true when holding down the CTRL key except that 6% zoom will be selectedinstead of "Fit". With the Alt and - keys you can decrease the zoom ratio and with the Alt and +keys you can increase the zoom.

To jump from one preview zoom rate to another you can use the zoom combo box which islocated between the two zoom buttons.

OK, Cancel and ?

Clicking on the OK button exits NoiseControl and applies the correction to the image. The current settings are saved andrestored when you use NoiseControl again. The Cancel button simply exits NoiseControl without changing the image.The? button displays the HTML version of the manual.


1.6 Step By Step Guide

On the following pages are tutorials for image processing two tasks in NoiseControl. They help you get an idea how and inwhich sequence to adjust the controls in NoiseControl. These instructions offer you guidance if you do not knowNoiseControl that well. Once you are more experienced you can develop your own style of using NoiseControl.

1.6.1 Denoising An Image

Quick and Easy Approach

1. Keep the preview zoom at 100% to see the denoising effect correctly.

2. Choose "Easy Mode" from the Mode combo box if it isn't already activated.

3. Click the Reset button to set the default values.

4. Switch to the Auto tab sheet and click on the Auto Sample button or choose "Full Image" from itsarrow menu. Click the Next button until you like the result.

5. If the result is still not satisfying, click the Auto Preset button. Also try the presets above and belowthe selected one in the preset list.

6. To fine-tune the result switch to Manual tab sheet and try various denoising and sharpening values.

7. Click OK to apply the correction.

Advanced Approach


2. Choose "Advanced Mode" from the Mode combo box if it isn't already activated.




5. If the result is still not satisfying, activate the sample tool and move the current sample area or drawone of your own.

6. Alternatively click the Auto Preset button. Also try the preset above and below the selected one in thepreset list.

7. To fine-tune the result switch to Manual tab sheet and increase or decrease the slider values a bit.

8. Switch to the Enhance tab sheet and adjust the controls there.


Expert Approach


2. Choose "Advanced Mode" from the Mode combo box if it isn't already activated.



5. If the result is still not satisfying, activate the sample tool and move the current sample area or drawone of your own.

6. Alternatively click the Auto Preset button. Also try the preset above and below the selected one in thepreset list.

7. For visual fine-tuning switch to "Lum. Intensity" on the Split View combo box, hold down the Shift keyand click on the split area that you like best. Do the same for the subsequent four items on the SplitView combo box.


8. To manually fine-tune the result switch to Manual tab sheet and increase or decrease the slidervalues a bit.

9. Switch to the Tone and Color tab sheets and use the controls there to selectively change thedenoising for certain tonal and color areas. Alternatively use the eyedropper tool: Hold down the mousebutton over the eyedropper tool to display its menu and select one of the options. Click on the previewover an area which you want to change, keep the mouse button pressed and drag left or right to changethe denoising intensity or threshold of that area.

10. Switch to the Enhance tab sheet and adjust the controls there.


1.6.2 Manual Denoising

Manually adjusting the sliders of the Manual tab sheet in Advanced mode often produces the bestresults.

Preparation

1. Switch to Advanced Mode and display the Manual tab sheet.

2. Click on the Reset button or choose Default Settings from its arrow menu.

2. Click the 100% button below the preview and use the hand tools to scroll the preview to an importantpart of the image, which clearly exhibits noise.


Color Denoising

3. Try the following values for the Threshold slider of the Color Denoise group: 5, 10, 15, 20. At thesame time observe the preview where the color noise is best visible. If 20 still does not sufficientlyremove the color noise, try higher values. Please use the lowest values that clearly removed all colornoise. If uncertain, activate the C button to see the color noise only. Make sure that no important colordetails are smoothed away in this view.

4. Adjusting the Radius slider. Try the following values: 4, 8, 12, 16. Observe the preview and see if ahigher value removes the noise more efficiently. Us the lowest effective value.

5. If you notice that color detail is removed that should stay, try lowering the Intensity slider value.Alternatively switch to the Enhance tab sheet and use the Saturation controls there to recover fadedcolors. You can also activate the Threshold check box and try different values for the two Thresholdsliders.

Luminance Denoising

6. Turn to the Luminance Denoise group. If too much luminance noise is present increase the Thresholdslider. If the result looks too soft lower the value. Increasing the slider in steps of 5 is usually fine. Keepthe lowest slider value that produces the best result.

7. Increase the Radius slider value in steps of 2 if too much noise is still visible. If the noise is alreadyremoved, try a lower value. At some point increasing the slider value will not produce a better result, sokeep the lowest effective value.

8. Try the following values for the Softness slider: 1, 2, 3. If you are using a high Radius value also tryhigher values. Too high values tend to make the image too soft. Too low may not remove all noise.

9. Finally use the Intensity slider to adjust the degree of noise removal. A value of 50 keeps some finegrain in the image, but also preserves many image details. If the image contains strong noise you canalso try values of 60 or 70. Higher value usually produce a plastic look.

10. If the image color is too distracting, activate he L button to only see the luminance. If necessary,readjust the sliders of the Luminance Denoising group again until you are satisfied. Better keep somenoise if the alternative is loosing image details.

Other Adjustments

11. If your image contain large flat areas, e.g. sky, wall, or skin, you can try to adjust their denoisingintensity or threshold separately with the controls of the Tone and Color Tab sheet.

12. Finally switch to the Enhance tab sheet and adjust the sharpening.


1.6.3 Creating Presets For Your Camera

1. Open photos that were taken with your camera at various ISO settings.

2. Run NoiseControl.

3. Use the steps described above for finding effective denoising parameters. But keep the controls onthe Color tab sheet at zero, because such settings are quite individual to each image.

4. Switch to the Auto tab sheet and click on the Save button.

5. Keep the predefined folder and preset file name and press OK. If no preset file name is suggested,NoiseControl cannot access the EXIF data of the image. In such a case enter the full name of yourcamera, e.g. "Canon EOS 5D Mark II", and add the ISO value with "ISO" before it, e.g. "ISO 6400". Thefile name would then look like this: ""Canon EOS 5D Mark II - ISO 6400". If you are unsure about thecamera name or ISO value, leave NoiseControl and look it up in the host application or anotherapplication that displays EXIF info.

6. Now the preset appears in the preset list on the Auto tab sheet. Click on the Auto Preset button tocheck if NoiseControl automatically selects it for the current image. The Auto Preset feature currentlyonly works in Photoshop, Photoshop Elements and Photoline, because other applications do not supplyEXIF data to plugins.

7. Cancel NoiseControl, switch to the next image and repeat the procedure from step 2.

1.6.4 Creating a Softening Effect

1. Keep the preview zoom at 100% to see the effect correctly.

2. Switch to Advanced Mode and click the Reset button.

3. Switch to the Enhance Tab sheet and deactivate the Sharpness check box.

4. Switch to the Manual Tab sheet and deactivate the Color Denoise check box.

5. Set the Intensity slider of the Luminance Denoise group to 100.

6. Choose a mid or high value for the Threshold slider.

7. Choose a Radius slider value.

8. Try a value of zero for the Softness slider. If it is not soft enough, try higher values.

9. Use the Intensity sliders to the Tone and Color tab sheets to selectively remove the effect again. Youcan also use the eyedropper tool to do that.


10. Click on OK to apply the effect to the image.


1.7 Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are the advantages of Noise Control compared to Photoshop's Reduce Noise filter?

Photoshop's Reduce Noise Filter works more or less sufficient with images with little noise, but has big problems dealingwith strong noise. At the highest settings it often removes strong noise only partially while already blurring many imagedetails. NoiseControl on the other hand removes strong noise while still keeping image details. Reduce Noise does notoffer any automatic noise detection feature like NoiseControl and contains much fewer options for fine-tuning the noisereduction parameters.

2. How does Noise Control compare to the noise reduction feature in Camera RAW andLightroom?

The noise reduction feature of Camera RAW and Lightroom tends to produce a soft plastic look. Unlike NoiseControl itdoes not manage to remove coarse film grain and adds blur artifacts to photos taken with ISO 12800 and higher. It onlyoffers five sliders for manual adjustment and there are no options for selectively treating image areas with other settings.NoiseControl on the other hand offer more fine-tuning options, including selective ones, detects noise automatically andlets you automatically open a preset for images taken with a certain camera and ISO value. NoiseControl also lets youview the luminance and color information separately, which helps with fine-tuning the settings.

3. You already offer a noise reduction mode in FocalBlade ...

The noise reduction feature in FocalBlade is not as sophisticated and convenient as NoiseControl. It is only meant as abonus feature. FocalBlade's noise reduction requires much more tweaking and is not really effective on images withstrong noise. Try both and you will see.

4. Should I deactivate the noise reduction option of my camera?

Yes, please do that if you shoot JPEG. If you shoot in RAW, it does not matter, because no noise reduction is applied toRAW files by the camera. Just make sure that no noise reduction is applied during RAW conversion.

Cameras do not have the time to apply extensive and sophisticated noise reduction to their photos, because they do notwant you to miss a shot. Additionally the noise reduction features of some cameras are quite brutal and remove imagedetails that could have been saved by NoiseControl. NoiseControl on the other hand has the time and is able to removenoise more effectively. NoiseControl may still be able to improve photos that had noise reduction applied in-camera, but itcannot restore removed image details.

5. How can I make NoiseControl render faster?

The Radius slider of luminance denoising has the biggest influence on rendering time. Larger noise particles require ahigher slider value, which in turn reduces the processing speed. Usually you can expect that images with stronger noiserequire longer rendering. Using a Radius values that is as low as possible decreases rendering time. Deactivatingfeatures that are not needed for a certain image, e.g. color noise reduction or sharpening, helps too.

You should also apply NoiseControl to images at capture size. Applying it to upsized images not only increases therendering time, but also makes NoiseControl work less effectively.


6. Is NoiseControl able to remove JPEG artifacts, moire patterns or hot pixels?

NoiseControl is able to remove other types of artifacts along with noise, although it is fine-tuned to remove grain-likeimage noise. If your image does not contain noise but JPEG artifacts, moire patterns or hot pixels, we recommend tryingother specialized software and see if it is able to retain more image details while removing the artifacts.

7. Some processed images show a slight desaturation. How can I avoid that?

Luminance noise reduction requires you to decide how much grain you want to retain in the image. If you want to keep asmany details as possible, you sometimes have to accept that a bit of grain remains. If you want to avoid as much grain aspossible, you more or less have to live with a softer look with fewer image details.

It is similar with color noise reduction. Removing very strong color noise completely involves the risk of reducingsaturation, especially in small color details. For some images it is better to partially keep color noise in order to retain colordetails.

Here is what you can do to avoid or reduce the desaturation problem:

1. In Advanced Mode reduce the Threshold slider value of the Color Denoising group. Values of 10 or below usually avoidsaturation loss. In Easy Mode best choose "Low" or "Mid" for color denoising.2. In Advanced Mode use the Recover slider and From Original Image check box to add back the saturation. In EasyMode activate the Recover Saturation check box.

8. Can I use FocalBlade for sharpening instead of NoiseControl's sharpening feature?

Yes, but the sharpening feature of NoiseControl has a big advantage. NoiseControl always sharpens a 100% noiseremoved version of the image, even if you set the intensity of the luminance noise removal e.g. to 50%. This makes surethat no noise is emphasized by the sharpening. So if you apply NoiseControl with less than 100% luminance noiseremoval to an image, FocalBlade may emphasize the luminance noise again. So it is a good idea to at least useNoiseControl's sharpening feature to presharpen the image, so that you later do not need to apply a strong sharpening inFocalBlade.


2 General Features

2.1 Tools & Reset

NoiseControl features four tools which are located at the top right corner of the preview. These tools let you performvarious preview-related tasks.

Hand Tool

The hand tool is the primary tool for scrolling the image in the preview. To do that click the left mouse button over thepreview, hold it down and move the mouse. Once the preferred part of the image shows up you can release the mousebutton. If one of the other tools is active, you can still scroll the image by using the right mouse button.

Sample Tool

With activated sample tool you can draw a sample rectangle on the preview. Once the rectangle is drawn and you releasethe left mouse button NoiseControl evaluates this sample area and adjusts the settings on the Manual tab sheet toachieve an optimal denoising in this area. In order for the automatic evaluation to be effective, the sample area has tocontain a representative noise pattern.

A good sample area needs to meet the following criteria:

It should contain no fine image details or texture, e.g. you could select a flat wall, clothes, unwrinkled skin or thecloudless sky.

•

It should not be too dark or bright, because such areas usually contain subdued noise.• It should be sufficiently large, at least 64 x 64 pixels. This is especially important for calculating the colordenoising parameters.

•

Here are examples of good and bad sample areas:

Bad sample:Many image details.

Bad sample:The texture hides the

noise andNoiseControl falselyinterprets it as noise.

Sufficient sample:Only large weakdetails, which aremostly ignored by

NoiseControl.

Perfect sample:Flat area with noimage details andonly noise. Not too

dark or bright.

After the sample area is drawn you can see a comment on the Help tab sheet. If the comment is in red letters, pleasechoose a new sample area according to the advice given. By clicking the Auto Sample button on the Auto tab sheet youcan also tell NoiseControl to automatically select a sample area.

Eyedropper Tool

Normally you use an eyedropper tool to select a color or brightness value from the image. NoiseControl's eyedropper tooluses a two-pass approach. First you click on a tone or color in the preview and then you move the mouse over thepreview to adjust the slider value that corresponds to the chosen tone or color.

So the first step is to click on an image area for which you want to change the denoising parameters. But you do notrelease the left mouse button after clicking. You have to keep it pressed down and move the mouse horizontally to the leftor the right. While you move the mouse you are changing the value of a slider (that was automatically picked byNoiseControl) as if you had clicked its slider knob and moved it. NoiseControl automatically chooses the slider, which youchange while dragging, depending on the mode of the eye dropper tool and the clicked pixels in the preview.

To see the result of your adjustment while dragging you either activate the Instant Preview check box on the Prefs tabsheet beforehand or you hold down the Shift key. Holding down the Shift key while dragging makes the preview updatewith each mouse movement. Alternatively you can also do multiple short click and drag movement to make the previewupdate in between them.

The eyedropper tool features four modes: Tone: Intensity, Tone: Threshold, Color: Intensity and Color : Threshold. Forexample, the "Tone: Intensity" mode lets you change one of the Intensity slider from the Shadows, Midtones or Highlightsgroup of the Tone tab sheet when clicking and dragging over the preview. The "Color: Threshold" mode on the other handtargets one of the Threshold sliders of the Color tab sheet in case you click on a colored area. If you clicked on a graycolored area, the same mode adjusts the Threshold slider of the Graytones group of the Tone tab sheet.

To select one of these modes hold down the mouse button over the eyedropper icon a bit longer than usual. Then a menufor choosing one of these four modes is displayed. You can see which mode is currently used from the tick mark on thismenu. Click on another menu item to activate that mode.

Preview Limit Tool

If you use a slower computer or have the NoiseControl window maximized to full screen, it can happen that the previewupdate is a bit slow. To speed up the preview update, you can use the preview limit tool to draw a rectangle on thepreview. Then only the image area inside the drawn rectangle displays the NoiseControl effect. As this area is smallerthan the preview, the rendering and preview updates requires less time.

To deactivate the preview limit again, double click the preview limit icon or choose the appropriate option from the arrowmenu of the Reset button.

The Reset Button

If you want to restart with the default settings or just opened a new image, it is a good idea to click on the Reset button.The Reset button performs the action that was last chosen on its menu. This menu appears when you click on the arrowbutton at the right of the Reset button.


Clicking the small arrow button at the right of the Reset button displays a menu with various reset options. "DefaultSettings" resets all controls to their default values. "Previous Settings" loads the settings that were used for processing theprevious image. "Own Defaults" opens the preset file that was either already specified, or if this is not the case, willprompt you for one. You can choose a new preset file with the "Define Own Defaults" menu item.

"Logged Settings" automatically opens the settings that were previously applied to the same image. This option looks intothe logfiles sub folder atC:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Application Data\ThePluginSite\NoiseControl\to see if a preset was saved with the file name of the current image. Such a preset is automatically saved by NoiseControlwhen you apply NoiseControl to an image in case the Log settings check box is activated. If NoiseControl locates such afile, it immediately applies it. If NoiseControl doesn't find one or if the host application does not support this feature,nothing will happen.

"Define Own Defaults" lets you choose a new preset file that will be used with the Own Defaults function. The "RemoveSample Area" option removes the sample area that was created with the Marquee tool in the preview. Finally, the"Remove Preview Limit" option removes the preview limit frame that was added with the preview limit tool.


2.2 Split Views

The split view options let you compare the original and the processed image side by side as well as visually choose otherdenoising parameters.

The Multi Check Box

If the Multi check box is activated, each split view stripe displays the same image section. If the Multi check box isdeactivated, different effects will be applied to different image sections and the image will be fully displayed in the preview.

Left, Right, Bottom and Top View

These four split views let you compare the original image with the modified version side by side. The corrected image willbe displayed on the left, right, top or bottom in the preview as the names indicate.

Lum. Intensity, Lum. Threshold, Lum. Radius

These three split views let you compare three luminance denoising parameters which are located on the Manual tabsheet. There are five split areas. The third, middle area displays the effect of the current setting while the others show theeffect of smaller and higher values. The first area displays the lowest possible value, so usually without or very weakdenoising. The second area shows half of the currently used value and the forth shows a 1.5 times higher value. The fiftharea shows a value that is double as large as the current one.

Hold down the Shift key and click on one of the stripes to choose the appropriate setting. Doing so deactivates split viewand shows the result of the chosen stripe.


Color Threshold, Color Radius

These split views let you compare two color denoising parameters which are located on the Manual tab sheet. There arefive split stripes. The third, middle area displays the effect of the current setting while the others show the effect of smallerand higher values. The first area displays the lowest possible value, so usually without or very weak denoising. Thesecond area shows half of the currently used value and the forth shows a 1.5 times higher value. The fifth area shows avalue that is double as large as the current one.

Hold down the Shift key and click on one of the stripes to choose the appropriate setting. Doing so deactivates split viewand shows the result of the chosen stripe.


2.3 The Bottom Tab Sheets

2.3.1 Help

The Help sheet is located at the right bottom of the NoiseControl window. This feature was built in to make it easier forbeginners to get started and makes it possible to use NoiseControl without a glance at the manual. If you move the mouseover a certain control, the text box will display some explanations and hints about the control.

After you know all about NoiseControl, you can deactivate these explanations by deactivating the check box at the rightbottom of the help sheet. But we recommend that you keep it nevertheless activated. It may remind you of something thatyou already forgot or missed reading.

2.3.2 Navigator

The Navigator tab works just like the Navigator panel in Photoshop. It displays a thumbnail of the image with a redrectangle that indicates which part of the image is displayed in the preview. You can use the Navigator to display a certainimage area in the preview by clicking on it in the thumbnail. To quickly scroll around in the preview click somewhere onthe thumbnail, hold down the mouse button and move the mouse.

2.3.3 Info

The Info tab shows information that is not essential but which may be helpful under certain circumstances.

The Show Removed Noise check box displays the image noise that was removed. It is similar to choosing theDifference blend mode on a layer with the processed image while having a layer with the original image underneath it.


The Reveal Shadows check box brightens up dark areas in the image, so that you can check if the noise was sufficientlyremoved there.

When moving the mouse over the preview, the color below the cursor is shown in the color box of the Info tab sheet.Additionally the color is shown as RGB and HSL values. The x and y values represent the image coordinates of the pixelwhose color is shown. For images with 16-bit/channel the color values are shown as 8-bit values like in Photoshop.

The two lines at the bottom of the Info tab sheet show the image size in pixel and the channel bit depth. The second linedisplays the camera model and the ISO value with which the photo was taken. If no EXIF data is available, this line isempty.

2.3.4 Prefs

The Prefs tab sheet contains some options for defining the behavior of NoiseControl.

On Start Up

The On Start Up combo box defines which settings are used when NoiseControl is started. The "Default Settings" optionsets all controls back to their default values. "Previous Settings" loads the settings that were previously applied to animage. "Own Defaults" loads a self-defined preset file. If no preset file was previously chosen, a file dialog appears.Otherwise use the "Define Own Defaults" item of the Reset arrow menu to choose a new preset file.

"Logged Settings" automatically opens the settings that were previously applied to the same image. It only works inPhotoshop, Photoshop Elements, Paint Shop Pro and Photline. Additionally it only works if you previously had the LogSettings check box activated and if you already processed the same image file. See below for more information.

Language

The Language combo box switches between localizations of the NoiseControl dialog. You can only choose betweenEnglish and German so far. When running NoiseControl for the first time, it will automatically be set to the language ofyour Windows installation.

Skin

The Skin combo box features various skin options. Skinning means that the user interface receives a new look. There aredifferent options for imitating the user interface of Lightroom, Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, PaintShop Pro and AffinityPhoto. There is also a dark version of Aero (the default UI style of Windows Vista/7), a special PhotoWiz skin style as wellas an option to only skin the sliders. You can use a different skin for the plugin, standalone and Lightroom versions. TheNone option of the Skin combo box recreates the standard controls and deactivates skinning, which requires restarting theplugin or standalone.

Keep Lum. Intensity & Keep Sharpness

If the Keep Lum. Intensity check box is activated, the Intensity control of the Luminance Denoise group on the Manual tabsheet will not be changed by the Reset feature or when opening a preset. The same is true for the Sharpness control onthe Enhance tab sheet if you activate the Keep Sharpness check box. Thus you can preserve your prefered luminancedenosing intensity value and sharpness values and do not need to readjust them again.


Multi-CPU Off

If you encounter any problems, you can deactivate the support for multiple processors and hyperthreading pipes with thischeck box. If you only have a non-hyperthreading, single-core processor, this check box will be disabled by default.

Instant Preview

If the Instant Preview check box is activated, the preview is updated while you drag a slider. Instant Preview may work tooslowly on computers with an older processor. You can also get the same effect if you hold down the Shift key whiledragging a slider.

Log Settings

With activated Log Settings check box NoiseControl automatically saves preset files in the logfiles sub folder atC:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Application Data\ThePluginSite\NoiseControl\after you press the OK button. In Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, Paint Shop Pro and Photline the file name of theimage is used as the preset file name. In other applications a random number is used, because these applications don'tsupply the file name of the image to NoiseControl. If you apply NoiseControl a second time to the same image and haveLog Settings activated, the previous preset file in the logfiles folder will be overwritten.

At least with Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, Paint Shop Pro and Photline this feature allows you to easily find thesettings that you applied to a certain image by looking into the logfiles sub folder. For other applications you can only lookat the file date and guess which preset file was used for which image.

In connection with the Logged Settings option of the On Start Up combo box (see above), you can use the Log Settingscheck box to automatically make NoiseControl start up with the settings that were applied the last time to the same image.So if you need to correct the same image again, you will automatically be presented with the same settings that you usedthe last time. In case you don't want to start up NoiseControl with the logged settings or forgot to activate this option, youcan also open the logged settings by clicking the arrow button next to the Reset button and choosing "Logged Settings"from the button menu.


2.4 Smart Filtering

Smart filtering means that you can readjust the settings of a filter without undoing previous operations, reopening theoriginal image or creating a new layer. It currently only works in Photoshop CS3 and higher.

Before you can apply NoiseControl as a smart filter, you have to turn the current background image or layer into a smartobject. You do that by choosing from the menu Filter > Convert for Smart Filters or Layer > Smart Objects > Convert toSmart Object.

After you applied NoiseControl by clicking OK on its dialog, you see a NoiseControl item on the Layers menu.

To readjust the applied NoiseControl settings, double click the NoiseControl item in the Layers menu. You can alsodeactivate the NoiseControl effect by clicking on the eye icon left of it. To adjust the opacity and blend mode of the effectclick on the icon with the two sliders on the right hand side of the NoiseControl item.


2.5 Batch Processing

2.5.1 Batch Processing in Photoshop

Photoshop offers a Batch feature on its File > Automate menu. This feature lets you batch process a series of images withthe help of a Photoshop action. So if you want to batch process images in Photoshop you only need to record an actionthat contains NoiseControl.

Recording an action with NoiseControl:

1. Open an image in Photoshop.

2. Switch to the Actions panel at the right and create a new action by using the New Action button or the pop-up panelmenu.

3. Choose NoiseControl from the Filter menu.

4. Now adjust the effect settings in NoiseControl as you want them recorded in the action.

5. Press OK on the NoiseControl dialog.

6. Press the Stop button on the Action panel. Now you have your NoiseControl action that you can use with File >Automate > Batch.


Batch processing a series of images with NoiseControl:

1. Open one of the images from the image series.

2. Select File > Automate > Batch.

3. In the Batch dialog make sure that your NoiseControl action is selected.

4. Set the other batch options and click OK to run it.

You can record a new action for each denoising task that requires a different NoiseControl effect. On the other hand if youdo not want to create a collection of different actions, you can also change the NoiseControl settings of the action. To dothat by click on the NoiseControl item in the Actions panel, change the settings in the appearing NoiseControl dialog andpress OK. If you want to apply individual NoiseControl settings to each image during batch processing, please activate thesmall icon left of the NoiseControl entry in the Action panel. This makes the NoiseControl dialog appear for each image,so that you can adjust the settings for each image.

2.5.2 Batch Processing in Paint Shop Pro

Paint Shop Pro (Version 8 and higher) offers a Process feature on the File > Batch menu for batch processing a series ofimages with the help of a PSP script. Recording such a script is quite easy.


Recording a PSP script with NoiseControl:

1. Open an image in PSP.

2. Select File > Script > Start Recording.

3. Choose NoiseControl from the Effects > Plugins menu.

4. Now adjust the effect settings in NoiseControl as you want them recorded in the action.

5. Press OK on the NoiseControl dialog.

6. Select File > Script > Stop Recording and save the script. Now you have a NoiseControl action that you can use withFile > Batch > Process.

Batch processing a series of images with NoiseControl:

1. Open one of the images from the image series.

2. Select File > Batch > Process or File > Batch Process.

3. In the Batch Process dialog choose your NoiseControl script from the Script frame.

4. Set the other batch options and click on the Start button to run it.

You need to record a new script for every NoiseControl effect that you want to apply during batch processing. You cancreate a collection of scripts with various NoiseControl effect and use these scripts as you need. If you want to applyindividual NoiseControl settings to each image during batch processing, please deactivate the "Silent mode" check box onthe Batch Process dialog. This makes the NoiseControl dialog appear for each image.


2.5.3 Batch Processing in Other Applications

There are some other applications that support batch processing with the help of plugins, e.g. Fireworks, Debabelizer andPhoto-Paint. Basically batch processing in other applications works the same as in Photoshop and Paint Shop Pro.


2.6 Key Shortcuts

NoiseControl lets you use a few key shortcuts for performing certain tasks. Some users usually prefer using key shortcutsas they help to achieve some tasks much faster.

Please note: If the input focus is resting on a combo box, edit box or listbox, please additionally hold down the ALT key,otherwise the key shortcut will not work.

Here is a list of all shortcuts that are available:

Ctrl and + Increases the preview zoom ratio

Ctrl and - Decreases the preview zoom ratio

Ctrl and 0 Set the preview zoom to Fit

Ctrl and 1 Set the preview zoom to 100%

R Triggers the Reset button

H Activates the hand tool

Space Activates the hand tool (Only if the mouse cursor is located overthe preview)

M Activates the sample area tool

I Activates the eyedropper tool

L Activates the preview limit tool

A Triggers the Auto Sample button

N Triggers the Next button

P Triggers the Auto Preset button


3 Special Controls

3.1 Modes

When running NoiseControl for the first time, you start in Easy Mode. If you don't have much knowledge about noisereduction or are not familiar with NoiseControl, it might be a good idea to work some time in Easy Mode. If it becomes toorestricting for you, switch to Advanced Mode. Advanced Mode contains all available options and lets you experienceNoiseControl's full potential.

3.1.1 Easy Mode

In Easy Mode you only have two tab sheets. The auto options are fully available (except two Preserve check boxes), butthere are only four manual controls, which still allow you to adjust the most important parameters.

For more detailed explanations, please read the Auto Tab page and Manual Tab pages.

3.1.2 Advanced Mode

Advanced Mode features all controls that are available in NoiseControl. With its five tab sheets it may be a bit complex fornovices, but advanced users will prefer it.

For more details, see the following pages: Auto Tab, Manual Tab , Tone Tab, Color Tab and Enhance Tab.


3.2 Auto Tab Sheet

The Auto tab sheet features two automatic denoising buttons and various preset controls.

3.2.1 Auto Sample

When clicking the Auto Sample button NoiseControl tries to detect a valid sample area, which is used for adjusting thedenoising parameters on the Manual tab sheet (except the Intensity slider of the Luminance Denoising group, which is notchanged). In depends on the selection on the arrow button menu if the full image is searched, a 50% sized-down versionof it or only the preview. Searching the preview produces the fastest, but least accurate results. Searching the full image isa more reliable method, but also takes more time.

After you clicked the Auto Sample button or selected one of the arrow menu options, the Next button is enabled. Clickingthe Next button searches for the next best sample area. So if you are not satisfied with the results of the first sample area,you can click the Next button again and again until you are satisfied. If no more sample area can be found, the Nextbutton is disabled again.

In rare cases this feature will not be able to find a sufficient sample area. Then try one of the other options on the arrowmenu. In the case of the Preview option, you can also try enlarging the NoiseControl window, changing to 100% zoom orscrolling the preview.

Sometimes you may not be satisfied with the results of Auto Sample. Then you should try drawing a sample area yourselfwith the sample tool. You can also manually adjust the controls on the Manual tab sheet. This is especially recommendedfor very strong noise.

You can make NoiseControl trigger the Auto Sample feature on startup by choosing the Auto Sample option on the Prefstab sheet.

3.2.2 Auto Preset

The Auto Preset button selects a matching preset from the preset list below. It extracts the camera model and ISO valuefrom the EXIF data to perform its task. At the moment EXIF data are only supplied by Photoshop, Photoshop Elementsand Photoline, so the Auto Preset feature will very likely not work if you run NoiseControl with another application. If youare not satisfied with effect of the chosen preset, try other presets in the preset list.

NoiseControl already contains generic presets for various general types of cameras. But it is more effective if you createyour own presets for the camera(s) and ISO values that you are using. You can create the settings for these presets, e.g.by using the Auto Sample button, the sample tool or by manually adjusting the controls on the various tab sheets. Clickingthe Auto Preset button acknowledges these self-created presets a higher priority and automatically select them if their filename contains a matching camera name and ISO value. See below on how to save your own presets.

You can make NoiseControl trigger the Auto Preset feature at startup by choosing the Auto Sample option on the Prefstab sheet.


3.2.3 Preset Options

The Preset List

The main part of the Auto tab sheet is occupied by a list box with available presets. 21 general presets are already builtinto NoiseControl. Additionally you can save your own more specific presets, which will appear at the top of this list if yousaved them in the default Presets folder. When you choose a preset from this list box, it is immediately applied andchanges all settings.

The Preset Combo Box

This combo box contains three options: "Show All" displays all presets in the preset list box. "Own" shows only yourself-saved presets. "Included" makes only the built-in presets appear.

Open

Clicking the Open button displays a file dialog for selecting and opening a preset file. This function is only necessary if youdid not save a preset in the default Presets folder of NoiseControl, because all presets of that folder are already displayedin the list box and can be opened by clicking them there. The folder of the last opened preset is displayed by default in thefile dialog.

Save

You can save the current NoiseControl settings as a preset with the help of the Save Preset menu item. The followingfolder is automatically displayed when clicking the Save button unless you just saved a preset in another folder:

Windows 2000/XP: c:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Application Data\ThePluginSite\NoiseControl\Windows Vista/7: c:\Users\<user>\AppData\Roaming\ThePluginSite\NoiseControl\MacOS X: /Library/Application Support/PhotoWiz/NoiseControl/Presets/

Please save presets into this Presets folder, otherwise they will not appear in the preset list box. You can open a savedpreset again by clicking it on the preset list box or by using the Open button.

If NoiseControl is able to access the EXIF data of an image, it automatically suggests a preset file name that contains thecamera name and ISO value. Please accept this name if you want the preset to be selectable by the Auto Preset button.


3.3 Manual Tab Sheet

The Manual tab sheet contains the parameters that are used for noise reduction.

3.3.1 Easy Mode

Easy Mode only features three listbar controls with five values for adjusting the denoising. Additionally there is a listbar forsharpening. Even if these options appear a bit limited they offer enough capacity to remove the most common types ofimage noise and compensate for the denoising with sharpening. For more precise settings and more options pleaseswitch to Advanced mode.

The Intensity values of the Luminance Denoise group determine the intensity of the luminance noise reduction. 0% doesnot remove any luminance noise whereas 100% applies full denoising. You often get the best result by using a value of50%. If you like it softer, try 75%. If you like it more grainy, try 25%.

The Reduction settings of the Luminance Denoise group control the denoising parameters and thus the effectivity of theluminance denoising. The "Low" option is meant for fine and less strong noise whereas "High" effectively removes morecoarse and pronounced noise. This listbar sets the values of the Threshold, Radius and Softeness sliders of theLuminance Denoise group in Advanced mode.

The Reduction listbar of the Color Denoise group influences the denoising parameters and thus the effectivity of the colordenoising. The "Low" option is meant for fine and less strong color noise whereas "High" removes more coarse and strongcolor noise. This listbar sets the values of the Intensity, Threshold, and Radius sliders of the Color Denoise group inAdvanced mode.

The Strength setting of the Sharpness group defines the parameters of the sharpness effect. A "Low" value producesweak and fine sharpening whereas "High" applies coarser and stronger sharpening.

The Recover Saturation check box tries to recover the satuation that was lost during color denosing. Activating it isrecommended if you use a High or Max value for the Color Denoise listbar. If the saturation of the image was not reduced,this check box has no effect.

3.3.2 Advanced Mode

Advanced mode offers more precise controls for adjusting the denoising effect. The Sharpness controls are located on theEnhance tab sheet in Advanced mode.


The Arrow Menu

In Advanced Mode there is an arrow button in the top left corner, which you can click to display a menu with variousluminance and color denoising items. These options correspond to the values of the Reduction list bars in Easy Mode.There is also a Reset menu item, which resets the controls on this tab sheets to their default values.

The Listbars Check Box

Whereas you have listbar controls in Easy Mode, they are optional in Advanced mode and can be displayed with theListbars check box. The activated Listbar check box replaces the sliders with listbar controls. To get the sliders backdeactivate it again. Whereas sliders contain up to several hundreds of values, listbars only offer five to nine values asclickable items. Listbars allow an easier and faster selection of useful values.

Listbars and their corresponding sliders are automatically synchronized. But if you select a slider value that is notavailable in the listbar, none of the listbar items is selected. That does not mean that no value is used. The slider valuesalways have precedence over the listbar values.

3.3.3 Luminance Denoise

If you deactivate the Luminance Denoising check box, no luminance denoising is applied. It is equal to setting theIntensity slider to zero. Quickly activating and deactivating the Luminance Denoising check box lets you compare theimage with and without luminance denoising applied.

An activated L button displays only the luminance channel of the image, which can be helpful for adjusting the luminancedenoising settings without being distracted by the color noise or denoising. Click it again to display all channels of theimage.

The Intensity slider or listbar controls to what extent the denoised image is used blended with the original image. At avalue of 100 the fully denoised image is used. At a value of 50 the original image is equally blended with the denoisedversion of the image. An intensity value in the middle of the range is usually best as you avoid that the image gets too


grainy or too soft. But it usually depends on the users taste if he likes a softer or more grainy look.

The Threshold control defines the threshold between noise and image details. If you set it too low, too much noise if leftin the image and sometimes artifacts appear. If you set it too high, too many image details are removed and the imagemay get too soft. The stronger the noise in the image, the higher you need to set the Threshold value. Choosing asufficient Threshold value is important for an effective noise reduction.

The Radius slider or listbar defines the size of the noise particles that are removed. If you set it too low, the denoising isless effective. If you set it to high, image details may be removed. The Radius value also has the biggest influence on therendering speed of NoiseControl. Higher values result in a slower rendering.

The Softness control influences the softness of the luminance denoising, but also impacts the quality of the denoisingeffect. A value of zero uses a faster version of the luminance denoising algorithm, which is usually less effective. So wedo not recommend using a value of zero. Values of 1 to 3 are sufficient for most cases. Higher values sometimes producea too soft result. A good rule of the thumb is to use a Softness value that is half as high as the Radius value. Lessemphasized noise may nevertheless benefit from a Softness value of 1 even if the Radius is set to 5 or 6.

3.3.4 Color Denoise

If you deactivate the Color Denoising check box, no color denoising is applied. It is equal to setting the Intensity slider tozero. Quickly activating and deactivating the Color Denoising check box lets you compare the image with and withoutcolor denoising applied.

An activated C button displays the color channels of the image without the luminance information, which is helpful foradjusting the color denoising settings without being distracted by the luminance noise. Click it again to display all channelsof the image.

The Intensity slider or listbar controls to what extent the color denoised image is blended with the original image. At avalue of 100 the fully color denoised image is used. At a value of 50 the color denoised version of the image is equallyblended with the original color channels of the image. In most cases a value of 100 should be used. Only if colordenoising affects the colors of the image too much, you can try to reduce the Intensity value.

The Threshold control defines the threshold between color noise and valid color information. If you set it too low, toomuch color noise is left in the image. If you set it too high, too many color details are removed and the image may getdesaturated. The stronger the color noise in the image, the higher you need to set the Threshold value. A value of 10works fine for most images. For severe color noise you should try values of 15 and 20.

If you activate the Threshold check box, two Threshold sliders will appear. They let you independently define thethreshold of each of the two color channels. The Cb channel consists of blue to yellow colors and the Cr channel containsred to cyan colors. Usually using the same threshold value for both channels (with deactivated Threshold check box)works fine. In rare cases there is more noise in one of the two color channels. Then using two threshold sliders lets youpreserve more color details.

The Radius slider or listbar defines the size of the color noise particles that are removed. If you set it too low, some of thecolor noise particles may not be removed. Setting it too high usually has no adverse effects if you selected a fittingThreshold value. A value of 8 is effective for most color noise problems.


3.4 Tone Tab Sheet

Some images contain large flat areas, e.g. shadows, sky, walls or skin, which look better if you make them softer than therest of the image. There may also be other image areas who contain more details where the details need to be preserved.To strengthen or weaken the denoising effect in these areas you can use the controls on the Tone and Color tab sheet.

The sliders of the Tone tab sheet let you change the luminance denoising parameters for certain tonal areas of the image.

The Arrow Menu

The arrow button in the top left corner displays a menu with a few local presets for increasing or decreasing some of theslider values. There is a Reset menu item, which resets the controls on this tab sheets to their default values.


The activated Listbar check box replaces the sliders with listbar controls. To get the sliders back deactivate it again.Whereas sliders contain up to several hundreds of values, listbars only offer five to nine values as clickable items. Listbarsallow an easier and faster selection of useful values.


The I and T buttons

Both buttons display a mask view that makes it easier to recognize which image areas are affected by the controls of theTone and Color tab sheets.

An activated I button visually displays the effect of the Intensity sliders of the Tone and Color tab sheets. A middle graycolor means that the intensity of luminance denoising was not changed. A bright gray color indicates that the intensity ofluminance denoising was increased for a certain image area. A dark gray color represents the decreased intensity for acertain image area. The brighter or darker gray an image area is displayed the stronger the intensity was increased ordecreased. Click the I button again to see the image.

An activated T button visualizes the effect of the Threshold sliders of the Tone and Color tab sheets. A middle gray colormeans that the threshold of luminance denoising was not changed. A bright gray color indicates that the threshold ofluminance denoising was increased for a certain image area. A dark gray color represents the decreased threshold for acertain image area. The brighter or darker gray an image area is displayed the stronger the threshold was increased ordecreased. Click the T button again to see the image.


Shadows, Midtones, Highlights and Graytones

As their names imply the Shadows group influences the luminance denoising in the dark image areas, the Midtones groupaffects the luminance denoising in medium bright areas and the Highlights group adjust it in bright areas. The Graytonesgroup affects image areas with little or no saturation, which includes gray colored as well as pure black and white areas.

The Intensity sliders or listbars let you decrease or increase the intensity of the luminance denoising of the appropriateimage area. A value of zero does not cause any change, which means that the value of the main Intensity slider, the onein the Luminance Denoise group of the Manual tab sheet, is used. But if the main slider has a value of e.g. 50 and you setthe Intensity slider of the Shadows group to +20, you are denoising the shadow areas with an effective intensity of 70 (50+ 20) while midtones and highlights are denoised with an intensity of 50.

The Threshold controls decrease or increase the threshold of the luminance denoising of the appropriate image area. Avalue of zero does not change anything, which means that the value of the main Threshold slider, the one in theLuminance Denoise group of the Manual tab sheet, is used. But if the main slider has a value of e.g. 15 and you set theThreshold slider of the Midtones group to +5, you are denoising the midtone areas with an effective intensity of 20 (15 + 5)while Shadows and highlights are denoised with a threshold of 15.


3.5 Color Tab Sheet

Some images contain large flat areas, e.g. shadows, sky, walls or skin, which look better if you make them softer than therest of the image. There may also be other image areas who contain more details where the details need to be preserved.To strengthen or weaken the denoising effect in these areas you can use the controls on the Tone and Color tab sheet.

The sliders of the Color tab sheet let you change the luminance denoising parameters for image elements with a certaincolor.

The Arrow Menu

The arrow button in the top left corner displays a menu with a few local presets for increasing or decreasing some of theslider values. There is a Reset menu item, which resets the controls on this tab sheets to their default values.




The I and T buttons

Both buttons display a mask view that makes it easier to recognize which image areas are affected by the controls of thethe Tone and Color tab sheets.

An activated I button visually displays the effect of the Intensity sliders of the Tone and Color tab sheets. A middle graycolor means that the intensity of luminance denoising was not changed. A bright gray color indicates that the intensity ofluminance denoising was increased for a certain image area. A dark gray color represents the decreased intensity for acertain image area. The brighter or darker gray an image area is displayed the stronger the intensity was increased ordecreased. Click the I button again to see the image.

An activated T button visualizes the effect of the Threshold sliders of the Tone and Color tab sheets. A middle gray colormeans that the threshold of luminance denoising was not changed. A bright gray color indicates that the threshold ofluminance denoising was increased for a certain image area. A dark gray color represents the decreased threshold for acertain image area. The brighter or darker gray an image area is displayed the stronger the threshold was increased or


decreased. Click the T button again to see the image.

Colors

There are seven groups of two controls on this tan sheet, which influence the luminance denoising in seven colored imageareas ranging from red to magenta.

The Intensity sliders or listbars let you decrease or increase the intensity of the luminance denoising of theappropriately colored image area. A value of zero does not cause any change, which means that the value of the mainIntensity slider, the one in the Luminance Denoise group of the Manual tab sheet, is used. But if the main slider has avalue of e.g. 50 and you set the Intensity slider of the blue group to +50, you are denoising the blue colored areas with aneffective intensity of 100 (50 + 50) while the other areas are denoised with an intensity of 50.

The Threshold controls decrease or increase the threshold of the luminance denoising of the appropriately coloredimage area. A value of zero does not change anything, which means that the value of the main Threshold slider, the onein the Luminance Denoise group of the Manual tab sheet, is used. But if the main slider has a value of e.g. 15 and you setthe Threshold slider of the orange group to +10, you are denoising the orange areas with an effective intensity of 25 (15 +10) while Shadows and highlights are denoised with a threshold of 15.


3.6 Enhance Tab Sheet

The Arrow Menu

The arrow button in the top left corner displays a menu with a few local presets. They correspond to the options availableon the Manual tab sheet in Easy Mode. There is a Reset menu item, which resets the controls on this tab sheets to theirdefault values.




3.6.1 Sharpness

If you deactivate the Sharpness check box, no sharpening is applied. It has the same effect if you set the Amount sliderto zero. Quickly activating and deactivating the Sharpness check box lets you compare the image with and withoutsharpening applied.

The Amount slider or listbar controls the strength of the sharpening effect. The higher the value, the stronger thesharpening. Values below 100 are usually sufficient for compensating the softening of the denoise effect.

The Surface control defines how much the surface areas of the image are sharpened. Surfaces are flat areas with littleimage details, which are blurred the most by denoising. A value of zero only sharpens the edges, areas with strong imagedetails, whereas a value of 100 sharpens the whole image, edge as well as surface area, equally. A value of 50 works finemost of the time, because surfaces usually do not have to be sharpened as strong as edges.

The Radius slider or listbar defines the size of the image details that will be sharpened. For images with fine details youshould use a value of 1.0. If you denoise an image with large noise particles, the image normally does not contain finedetails. Then you can use a higher Radius value to produce a more effective sharpening.


3.6.2 Saturation

Using a very high value for the Threshold slider of the Color Denoise group of the Manual tab sheet also desaturates thecolors of the image. In such a case you can use the Recover slider or list bar to compensate this effect and increase theimage saturation again.

Without an activated "From Original Image" check box the Recover slider works like a normal saturation control thatlinearly increases the saturation of all pixels. You should then be careful and not use a too high Recover value.

If the "From Original Image" check box is activated, NoiseControl compares the original and denoised image and onlyincreases the saturation for the pixel that were desaturated during denoising. If no desaturation occurred, the Recovercontrol has no effect. But if a strong desaturation occurred, the Recover control has a strong effect. With activated "FromOriginal Image" check box you can use a high value (or even the highest possible value of 50) for the Recover slider. Inrare cases very high values partially add back the color noise. Then you need to lower the Recover value until the artifactsvanish.

3.6.3 Grain

The Amount control of the Grain group adds a grain effect to the image. Although we normally do not recommend usingthis feature, it can help if you cannot avoid a strong denoising with a soft look and want to recreate the impression ofimage details by adding a bit of grain. Try to avoid too high values otherwise the grain becomes too obvious. On the otherhand you can also use this feature for special effect purposes.


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